The Speaker’s Lobby: Foiled

Democrats will control the House in the next congress, but what does that mean for President Trump. Fox's Chad Pergram has more in "The Speaker's Lobby."

Fox's Chad Pergram

I'm Chad Pergram with the Speaker's Lobby.

Democrats didn't know what hit them when they lost control of the House of Representatives in 1994 for the first time in 40 years.

But it proved to be a good thing for President Bill Clinton. Then-House Speaker Newt Gingrich was radioactive. President Clinton needed a foil, and he earned one in Gingrich and the upstart House Republicans. Gingrich challenged the President over government spending, sparking three government shutdowns.

Now, Republicans lost the House during President Trump's first midterm. It's possible that losing the House could be the best thing that ever happened to President Trump. His poll numbers are low. Democrats promise exhaustive investigations and inquiries into a host of issues. And if ever anyone needed a foil, it's President Trump.

And much the same way Gingrich was toxic, prospective House Speaker Nancy Pelosi can be virulent politically, too. Republicans have transmogrified Pelosi into their arch-enemy for years. Democrats intend to probe multiple aspects of the Trump Administration. That's why they must play their cards very carefully, lest they plunge into the historical trap which Mr. Trump may lay for them.